Present on the occasion were Mandal Chairman Babasaheb Sudam Kambale, Secretary Sudhir Sitaram Salavi, Sudhir Jakhere, APMG (BD) Maharashtra Circle Yadagiri Nyalapelli, Assistant Director (PSR) Maharashtra Circle, and philatelist Ashwini Manjure
The postcards were designed by Padma Shri awardee Achyut Palav, who was present at the release function. PIC/ @cpmgmaharashtra
Soon after the first glimpse of Mumbai’s iconic Lalbaugcha Raja was unveiled on Sunday evening, the Maharashtra Postal Circle under India Post released a special set of four picture postcards themed “Ganesh Utsav: Cultural Heritage of Maharashtra”, along with a special cancellation.
The postcards were designed by Padma Shri awardee Achyut Palav, who was present at the release function.
The Pratham Darshan (first glimpse) of Lalbaugcha Raja was held around 7 pm by the Lalbaugcha Raja Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal, as per news agency ANI.
Present on the occasion were Mandal Chairman Babasaheb Sudam Kambale, Secretary Sudhir Sitaram Salavi, Sudhir Jakhere, APMG (BD) Maharashtra Circle Yadagiri Nyalapelli, Assistant Director (PSR) Maharashtra Circle, and philatelist Ashwini Manjure.
Extending his greetings to devotees and philatelists across Maharashtra and Goa, Amitabh Singh, Chief Postmaster General of Maharashtra Circle, said the postcards celebrate the rich cultural heritage of Ganesh Utsav.
Every year, millions of devotees come here for darshan. The unveiling of the Lalbaugcha Raja, the iconic Ganesh idol, is also one of the main attractions of the festival, according to news agency ANI.
The history of the Lalbaugcha Raja is quite famous, as it is the popular Ganesh idol of the Lalbaugcha Raja Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal, located at Putlabai Chawl, a place of worship founded in 1934.
The Lalbaugcha Raja Ganapati idol has been taken care of by the Kambli family for over eight decades. Ganesh Chaturthi, a ten-day festival that starts on the fourth day of the Hindu lunisolar calendar month Bhadrapada, will start on 27 August this year. This auspicious ten-day festival starts with Chaturthi and ends on Anantha Chaturdashi.
The festive period is also known as Vinayak Chaturthi or Vinayak Chavithi. The festival celebrates Ganesha as the God of New Beginnings and the Remover of Obstacles, as well as the god of wisdom and intelligence, as per ANI.
It is celebrated with much fanfare in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra, with lakhs of devotees converging into mandals to seek blessings from Lord Ganesh.
For the festivities, people bring Lord Ganesh idols to their homes, observe fasts, prepare mouth-watering delicacies, and visit pandals during the festival.
Meanwhile, Indian Railways on 20 August announced that it will operate 392 special train trips during Ganesh Chaturthi to facilitate passenger travel and ease congestion during the festival.
The service will run from 21 August to 10 September, the Railways said in a post on X, "For the convenience of passengers during Ganesh Chaturthi, Indian Railways has announced 392 train trips," reported ANI.
Earlier in July, the Maharashtra government declared the public Ganeshotsav as the "Maharashtra State Festival."
The announcement was made in the Legislative Assembly by Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar, who said the tradition of public Ganeshotsav was started in Maharashtra in 1893 by Lokmanya Tilak.
"This festival is deeply rooted in social, national, freedom, self-respect, and linguistic pride. It continues in the same spirit today. It is a matter of pride and honour for Maharashtra," Shelar had told the state assembly, reported ANI.
(With ANI inputs)
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